Suicide Forest Will Have Return Engagement Next Year

Ma-Yi Theater Company has announced the first two shows of its 2019-20 season, its 30th anniversary season.

The season will kick off with the world premiere of Felix Starro, a new musical by Jessica Hagedorn and Fabian Obispo based on a short story by Lysley Tenorio centering on the struggles of a young, undocumented immigrant in San Francisco and his famous faith healer grandfather. Ma-Yi's producing artistic director Ralph B. Peña will direct, with choreography by Brandon Bieber and orchestrations by Paulo K. Tiról. This will mark the first time ever that a musical created by Filipino Americans will be presented off-Broadway. The production will run August 23-September 15 at Theatre Row, with opening night set for September 3.

Next, Kristine Haruna Lee's Suicide Forest will come to A.R.T./New York's Mezzanine Theater in a return engagement after a successful world-premiere run at Bushwick Starr earlier this year. The show is described as "a bilingual nightmare play excavating the Japanese-American consciousness and its looming relationship with sex, suicide, and identity." It will run February 25-March 22, 2020, with opening night set for March 1.

A soon-to-be-announced coproduction with one of New York's most celebrated theater companies will close out the season.